Wednesday, March 7, 2018

In a 9×13 baking dish, lightly pepper the salmon on both sides. If using low sodium soy sauce, salt the salmon to taste.

In a non-reactive bowl or measuring cup, combine the first four ingredients and the thinly sliced green onions

Pour the mixture over the salmon and let marinate for 20min. You may marinate for up to 30min.

Bake salmon at 400 for 20min

NOTES:

I've made this the past two years for Wigilia. It's delicious and easy.

Garnish with a sprig of herb like thyme or rosemary. The visual effect is totally worth the $$ you're going to pay to get fresh herbs in the middle of winter, even if that part gets thrown away before eating. It's just pretty. I'll add a photo someday when I find it. Until then, just take my word for it. ;-)

Do not make one piece per person for Wigilia. Lots of us ended up having only half when there is so much other food to consume.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and chopped mushroom stems to the skillet. Fry until any moisture has disappeared, taking care not to burn garlic. Set aside to cool.

When garlic and mushroom mixture is no longer hot, stir in cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, black pepper, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Mixture should be very thick. Using a little spoon, fill each mushroom cap with a generous amount of stuffing. Arrange the mushroom caps on prepared cookie sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the mushrooms are piping hot and liquid starts to form under caps.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Season pork chops with salt and pepper, to taste.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add pork chops and sear both sides until golden brown, about 2-3 minutes.
Place into oven and roast until completely cooked through, reaching an internal temperature of 140 degrees F, about 8-10 minutes.*
To make the sweet and sour glaze, combine balsamic vinegar, honey, garlic, oregano, basil, thyme and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan over medium heat; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.
Serve pork chops immediately with sweet and sour glaze.

NOTES:

I skipped the red pepper flakes and poured the glaze over both sides of the chops while still in the pan.

Season pork with salt and pepper. Turn Instant Pot on "Sauté”, and add butter and melt. Add the pork loin and sear the sides of the pork loin to a nice golden brown. Add the onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 2 minutes.
Stir in the broth, Worcestershire sauce, brown sugar, mustard, and herbs.
Close the lid, set to high pressure, and after the pressure cooker reaches full pressure, cook for 15-30 minutes *depending on size & preferred doneness.

After the cooking time is complete, press "Cancel" and carefully release the pressure. If possible, check the internal temperature of the pork loin (it should be about 145°F).
Remove the pork loin from the Instant Pot (keep the juices the Instant Pot), cover and allow the pork loin to rest for about 10 minutes, depending on how large your loin roast is and how well done you like it.
Mix together the cornstarch and water. Add to the Instant Pot with the juices. Turn Instant Pot on "Sauté” and simmer until thickened. Taste seasoning and add additional salt and pepper if desired.

Be sure to sear well all around. It holds in juices and adds lots of flavor.

The herbs were delicious and I'll definitely do this again.

The only change I'd make is to cut the roast into 2 pieces so it's a uniform thickness. Mine was thinner on one end and I ended up restarting the instant pot 3 times to get it to an internal temperature of 145 in the thickest part.

Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. Shake the pan from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with more kosher salt ( I like these salty like French fries), and serve immediately.

Add butter to the dry ingredients and toss it to coat with flour. Working quickly with clean fingers or a pastry blender, rub or cut butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal.

Add frozen raspberries to the mixture and toss to coat. Drizzle the heavy cream evenly over the mixture. Toss with a fork, scraping up from the bottom, until the dough starts to clump together. Knead the mixture together in the bowl until it comes together in a mass. It’s okay if there are a few stray bits and dry patches; the most important thing is to avoid overworking the dough.

Turn out the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Press in stray bits gently and shape the dough into an a 7 to 8-inch square about ¾-inch thick. It should look a bit rough and ragged.

Using a knife or bench scraper, divide the square into 9 smaller squares. Divide each square in half diagonally to make 18 small triangles.

Separate the scones carefully to give them room to spread. Bake until pale golden, about 12 to 15 minutes.

To prepare the glaze, combine lemon juice and ½ cup confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl. Whisk to combine. Add more sugar, as needed to create the desired consistency for glazing.

Cool scones for at least 10 minutes before glazing. Serve warm or at room temperature.

I used Aldi canned blueberries instead of frozen fruit and it was super messy. Frozen would be better.

I tried to accomplish steps in advance and had the dry ingredients and the lemon zest mixed up in a bowl overnight. I'm wondering if the zest activated the baking powder because they did not raise as much as expected.

Because I used seasoned cubes, I would not add extra salt. (Maybe add pepper, and definitely added more sage and thyme, but Grandma also had a note to add poultry seasoning to taste and I don't bother.)

I don't know what the deal is with the 1/4 cup of water, but that seems very inadequate to me. I just dump in a can of chicken broth, mixed with the egg. It may be relevant that I never actually use stuffing to stuff the turkey though. It seems like way too much trouble to get in and out so I just bake it as a side dish.

I don't know how much sausage Grandma used, but I use one pound of either breakfast sausage, or sometimes you can get sausage seasoned for stuffing. Either is good.